Goodbye, my Love
by X Livi4eva X
Summary: What if Arthur didn't banish Guinevere from the kingdom when he had found her with Lancelot? What if he was persuaded to have her executed the following day? PART II: It's Istanbul 1511 and Arthur and Guinevere have been given a second chance yet they are still to discover who they truly are. R&R
1. Prologue

**PROLOGUE**

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><p>Her eyes filled with tears as she watched the two men she loved fight to the death. The sound of metal clashing together rose in pitch and echoed in the great hall. Soon the two men stepped back and circled each other while exchanging glares. The sweat on their foreheads was hidden by the darkness of the room. But all could see Arthur's crystal blue eyes which had turned liquid ever since he had entered the hall.<p>

A few moments ago Arthur had wandered in there in the darkness of the night with only a candle light to guide him. Only to find the woman he loved in the arms of his most trusted friend. His lips coaxing on her mouth and his eyes sealed shut. Her arms had been snaked around his neck and her body pressed against his. The two of them had turned to the doorway when they had heard something drop. They found the young King Arthur standing there with his mouth slightly open in shock. The candle had been abandoned on the floor with the wax spilled around it.

Guinevere had pulled away from Lancelot. Her eyes met her fiancé's and she felt guilty. Arthur felt contaminated by what he had just been witness to. She felt filthy and ashamed of herself. And Lancelot, he returned his friend's gaze in an almost mocking way. That look had driven Arthur to unsheathe his sword and charge at him with a roar.

Now the two men, who had once been so close, were now enemies and were trying to kill the other. At the thought of Lancelot and Guinevere being together, Arthur let out a cry before crashing his blade down onto Lancelot's right arm. His opponent was startled and he stumbled back a bit, his hand covering his arm. When he let go of it, blood gushed freely from the wound. He twitched when he felt the stinging pain. Then raised his sword to attack Arthur and Arthur responded by doing the same.

'Stop!' Screamed Guinevere as she ran between them. Guilt filled her heart; she had made two friends hate each other. 'Please, stop!'

Her begs caused the two men to drop their swords hastily but neither of them went to comfort her when she began to cry. Arthur looked at the woman he loved with eyes which melted her heart. How could she have done this to him? She loved him just as much as he loved her; and in a couple of days she was to be his wife- the Queen of Camelot. Then Lancelot had returned and he had turned her world upside down. Her attraction to him couldn't be controlled and now they ended up in the position they were now in. Guinevere looked at her fiancé, hoping to find forgiveness in his eyes. But he broke the stare by looking away.

The blade of the axe perched on the scaffold glistened in the little sunlight there was. The crows screeched above among the dark clouds in the pale sky. A large crowd of whispering Camelot citizens surrounded the scaffold. Arthur watched all this from his balcony, his eyes as liquid as they were last night. He was attending the execution of the one he loved, Guinevere. Lancelot had already been executed privately earlier this morning. And Guinevere had weeped all day in her cell until this moment.

It was the law that if the lover of the King/Queen had been found 'behaving inappropriately' with the opposite gender should be executed the following day. Arthur did not want this happen to Guinevere but she had been charged with adultery. He considered banishing her from the kingdom but then his people would see him as a weak king. His advisers had persuaded him to do this, to do what was right.

Guards brought Guinevere out into the open, her wrists were chained and her head was bowed. The crowd immediately booed at the sight of her. She was heading for the scaffold where the executioner waited for her with his axe. A shiver ran down her spine as she looked up at him. He was a large man and had a mysterious scary feeling about him. His face was covered by a black mask and he wore clothes like a blacksmith. Despite the booing of the crowd, Guinevere walked up the steps of the scaffold gracefully like a queen. As she did she looked up and her eyes met Arthur's. He looked away quickly and she felt rejected. He didn't want to look at her in the eye or he would break down and cry.

Her eyes adverted to the large stump on the scaffold with a perfect curve at the top for her neck to fit in. At the sight of it her eyes filled with tears. She felt like she had been betrayed by the one she loved. But she had also stabbed him in the back so hard that it forced him to do this. Her head turned to look at the executioner who was expecting her to do something.

'Kneel!' He demanded and she immediately knelt down to the stump when she heard his frightening voice. Arthur was now looking down at the execution once again. He wanted to call out and stop it but he knew he couldn't.

'God have mercy on your soul,' muttered the executioner as Guinevere rested her head on the stump. Tears rolled down her face and she gazed at the crowd in front of her.

'Whore!' They were yelling at her and she looked down. These were people who once loved her greatly.

'Any last words?' asked the executioner and Guinevere blinked twice before opening her mouth.

'I know I have done wrong,' she called out to the people and their chants slowly died. 'But I hope you find it in your hearts to forgive me one day. I cannot describe how ashamed I am of myself. I have never felt so distraught in my life. Be good to your king, Arthur. I know he wants the best for you; and so do I.'

The crowd were silent for a moment and some people began to whisper. Was it a good idea to execute Guinevere? She had done so much for them recently. And she would make a wonderful queen. Now that Lancelot was dead she couldn't be drawn to him.

The executioner raised his axe and the crowd gasp. The tiny hairs on the back of Guinevere's neck stuck up and she accepted her fate. Her eyes closed and the last few tears streamed down her face.

Arthur looked down at her and the axe hanging not far above her. He couldn't do this, he had to stop it. He called out to her.

'Guinevere!' He cried and the crowd of people looked up at him. Guinevere opened her eyes and smiled slightly, he did love her. But it was too late, the axe was already crashing down on her and with one hack, her head was off. Arthur looked away with liquid eyes before burying his face in his hands. _Guinevere_, he thought to himself, _forgive me_.


	2. Chapter I

_**This was only meant to be a one shot story, but some of you commented asking for another chapter. So I decided to make this into a story but a short one, around ten chapters long maybe. And you'll see how it ends!**_

**CHAPTER ONE**

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><p>With sweat dripping from his forehead, Arthur awoke from a terrible dream. The image he had just dreamt of remaining in his mind. He clasped his large hands over his ears and shook his head while whispering no. Tears escaped from his eyes and slipped down his pale cheeks.<p>

The sound of footsteps invaded his ears and he reached for his bedside candle. After snatching it quickly, he flashed it around to see if anyone was in his chambers. Breathing heavily he glanced around, dreading to see the unthinkable.

Suddenly he stopped moving when his eyes gazed upon Guinevere at the foot of his king-sized breath. Arthur's eyes widened and his mouth opened in shock. The candle slipped out of his hands and onto the wooden floor.

'Guinevere,' he managed through his tears.

'Arthur,' her voice was more gentle than he remembered.

'I must be dreaming.' Her mouth formed the beautiful smile she always wore. Slowly she began to approach him before sitting next to him on the bed. For some strange reason, Arthur was not scared.

'Then let it be a good dream,' she whispered as she leaned forward slightly. There was only a short space between their lips. Arthur's eyes fell to her clothing, she was wearing the same crimson dress she always wore.

Without warning she slowly laid down next to him before pecking his right cheek with her soft lips. The bed they lay in would have been the bed she laid in as Queen of Camelot. If only she had waited a couple more days.

Arthur's heart raced against his chest as he turned to face Guinevere, his true love. His eyes met hers and were lost in their depth. She had not changed at all since the last time he had seen her, three months ago. Same long light brown wavy hair and soft cheeks. Same glistening deep brown eyes and beautifully shaped lips.

Slowly, he dipped his hands into her silken tresses, feeling their rich sheen as he brought his lips down to hers. For a moment they remained mere inches away from each other, breathing in short, quickening breaths. Then, the space between them was no more.

Arthur pressed his lips against hers forcefully and she rose up to meet him. Their eyes were sealed shut within seconds. Her lips were softer than he remembered. That kiss reminded him of how much he loved Guinevere. Arthur did not know she had moved until he felt her delicate fingertips trace imaginary lines on his face. He breathed in through his nostrils quickly, feeling his skin shudder under her touch.

When their kiss was broken, Arthur snaked his arms around _his _Guinevere and held her tight. Never wanting to let her go again. She rested her head on his chest and breathed in quickly. The two of them remained their embracing.

'Forgive me, I regret what I did,' Arthur brought up the subject none of them wanted to talk about. Guinevere did not seem offended by his actions. She had come to him in the middle of the night and lay in his bed.

'I already have,' she said with a smile and Arthur couldn't stop himself from smiling back. With that, the two of them fell asleep. Their souls became one, never to be torn apart by anyone or anything.

The following morning arrived and Arthur awoke to an empty space next to him. His arm still stretched out around an imaginary body. Guinevere must have climbed out quietly and left him sleeping. He imagined her kissing his cheek gently before doing so.

At the thought of stealing another kiss from her lips, he jumped out of bed and threw on his royal robes. Then he began to walk over to the door at the over side of the room. His pace quickened when he reached the corridors and he soon found himself running.

Suddenly he crashed into Merlin who was on his way to give Arthur his fresh clothes for the day. The shirt and trousers bounced out of his hands and landed on the hard floor in a pile. At the sight of it Merlin sighed and knelt down to pick them up.

'Ah, Merlin!' Arthur exclaimed, happier than usual. Even Merlin looked shocked to see him so excited. He gathered up the clothes before standing up to his original height. 'Just the person I need to see.'

'That's a rare thing for you to say,' commented Merlin with an awkward smile. 'Why are you so happy?' He began to feel perturbed by Arthur's unusual happy smile.

'Don't act like you don't know!'

'What are you-'

'Cut the rubbish, Merlin. Have you see Gwen?'

Merlin hesitated and looked up at his master with dark confused eyes. Then he realised what was happening and his gaze dropped.

'Arthur, Guinevere is dead,' Merlin managed with a tear glistening on his cheek. Arthur looked down, his brow narrowed in confusion. Then he realised that last night was not real, and that he had imagined the whole thing.

Arthur was speechless, inside he wanted to break down and cry. Only a few tears formed in his eyes but didn't escape. He found himself trying to tell Merlin he was wrong but the words rolled off his tongue. Finally, sense came back to him and he turned in the opposite direction.

'Get that washed again,' he hissed to Merlin before dragging himself back down the corridor. Merlin sighed hastily, but did have pity for Arthur. Everyone knew that he didn't want to execute Guinevere. He thought it would make him stronger so he could deal with his enemies more efficiently. Hoping to feel no pity when he executed another for a crime. But executing the one he loved only made him weaker and his people feared for him.


	3. Chapter II

**CHAPTER TWO**

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><p>Days past of none stop working for Merlin. He did his usual chores: scrubbing Arthur's armour, washing his clothes, feeding and grooming his horse, cleaning his room and being an object for him to practise fighting on. Arthur also got on with his usual jobs despite the execution of Guinevere.<p>

At night he sometimes saw her, sometimes she was happy and sometimes she was sad. He would weep quietly under his sheets and Merlin would hear this. The young king was beginning to lose his mind, and Merlin had to do something about it. He knew that Arthur would be a great king and would allow magic to be practised in the kingdom some day. Merlin hadn't lost faith in him and he never, ever would.

After a long day of chores, Merlin returned one night to Gaius and collapsed on the kitchen table. Gaius lowered his glasses to reveal his curious eyes when he looked up from his potions. The young warlock looked up at him and let out a little moan to show how tired he was.

'Don't look at me like that, you've still got the pots and pans to wash,' Gaius reminded him with a slight smile. Merlin's gaze moved to the dirty dishes on the side and let out an even louder moan.

'You never let me rest, don't you?' He groaned as he buried his face in the wooden table.

'You cannot live here for free, Merlin, you of all people should know that. I'm risking my life- looking after a wizard in my own home.'

'Yeah well Uther is dead now and we both know Arthur will allow magic to be practised in the kingdom again.'

Gaius gave him a strange, disturbing look and Merlin swallowed hard.

'Some day,' he added uncomfortably as the old man lowered his gaze. Merlin felt relieved for some strange reason.

Gaius slid a small plate of food to him and Merlin caught it before it fell off the table. When he glared down at it, he suddenly felt ravenous and began to eat. That was when Gaius opened his mouth to speak.

'Arthur has lost a lot recently: his father, his most trusted friend and his lover,' were the words that came out of his mouth. Merlin stopped munching on his chicken and looked up from his plate. 'He'll need all the support he can get.'

'I know, I know,' he sighed as he dropped the chicken leg onto his plate. 'Arthur is really weak at the moment. Sometimes...sometimes... oh never mind.'

'No, say it.'

Merlin looked up at Gaius and felt like he was being interrogated by Gaius' hard curious stares.

'Sometimes he cries at night quietly,' he let it out.

There was an awkward silence between the two men.

'Most nights,' Merlin corrected himself before taking another bite of his chicken.

'I suppose it is because of Guinevere,' Gaius said quietly but loud enough for anyone in the room to hear.

'He says her name in his sleep,' Merlin stopped to take a bite out of his chicken, 'he says he is sorry. Do you ever think that he sees her in his head?'

Gaius gave him a look which made him feel stupid. Merlin bit his lip and slowly returned the chicken to the plate.

'I mean, one morning he came to me, asking where Guinevere was. I had to tell him that she was dead and when he heard this, his face turned as pale as the moon. Then he scurried away with his head bowed and I swear I saw a tear glistening on his cheek,' he explained and Gaius nodded like he understood.

'It's normal I suppose. But Arthur, being such a strong character, is being so weak. I feel so sorry for him, he must love Gwen very much,' he sighed.

'Doesn't change his attitude towards me though,' grunted Merlin and Gaius dragged his plate of food away. The young warlock glared up at him in shock.

'I think you've had enough, don't you?' Gaius asked as he raised one eyebrow.

'What do you mean? I've hardly started!'

'That's not the only thing you haven't started,' he signalled towards the dirty pots and pans in the distance. 'Arthur is the weakest he's ever been, his enemies probably taking advantage of this and planning to invade. And think about Morgana! I doubt that she is weeping for him, she's his greatest threat. But you only care about eating? Go and get scrubbing those pots and pans before I become_ your _greatest threat.'

After exchanging glares, Merlin gave in and jumped up out of his seat.

'I do care about Arthur, if I didn't I wouldn't have saved him all those times. Ever since I arrived in Camelot I've been protecting him and he doesn't even know it. How many times have I saved him? I don't know- I've lost track!' With that he stormed towards the pots and pans and began cleaning them.

Gaius wanted to argue but he didn't see the point of it. It would only make Merlin more upset than he already was. He left the young warlock to sulk on his own, and went off for a stroll around the castle.

Later that night, Merlin was on his way back to his and Gaius' apartment after he had sneakily taken some food from the kitchens. He stopped outside Arthur's chambers when he heard noises. Usually he would hear Arthur's voice talking to himself. But instead he heard his and someone else's, a woman's.

The door was slightly ajar and Merlin chose to look through the gap. Arthur was laid on his bed, his arm wrapped around a body. A body which caused Merlin to rub his eyes and blink twice. The body wore a crimson dress down to the ankles and had light brown delicate hands. The curious young warlock looked through the gap from a different angle. Only to find out that the body belonged to who he thought it belonged to, Guinevere.

Her face had not changed much. Her long hair dangled down past her shoulders and she giggled at every kind thing Arthur said.

'If only everyone else could see you, I'd make you my queen,' he said with a smile and Guinevere blushed.

'They just don't look hard enough, I'm always here, with you, in your heart.'

Arthur gaze dropped sadly, 'I can never forgive myself for what I did to you. Even though you have forgiven me.'

'You did what you thought was best.'

'But it wasn't for the best, was it? It ruined my life and only made me weaker.'

Arthur saw Guinevere's eyes advert to the slightly ajar door. She thought she had heard something from behind it. Immediately the king sat up and glared at the gap. Merlin realised they was looking at him and he jumped to his feet. As fast as he could, he escaped the scene and found himself slipping and sliding down the corridors. He had to tell Gaius about what he had been witness to...


	4. Chapter III

**CHAPTER THREE**

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><p>The following morning came and Merlin literally jumped on Gaius to tell him about what he had seen last night in Arthur's chambers. When he awoke, Gaius didn't look too please to see the young warlock in his face.<p>

'For God's sake, Merlin,' he moaned as he sat up on the bench. 'What is it?'

'You will never believe what I saw last night,' started Merlin as he sat next to Gaius.

'You will never believe what I will do to you if you wake me up like that again.'

Merlin's eyes narrowed at the old man before he ran his hand through his chestnut brown short hair.

'Maybe I was dreaming, maybe I wasn't. But I saw something really strange in Arthur's chambers,' he carried on with gaze focused on the ground, trying to remember what had happened that night.

'Why on earth were you in Arthur's chambers?' Gaius asked confusingly and Merlin sighed.

'I was walking past and I heard voices from his chambers. So I looked through a gap and I saw Guinevere in Arthur's arms.'

'You're mad.'

'I know what I saw-'

'Perhaps you've been working too hard and haven't had enough sleep, so then you start seeing things.'

'I wish that was it but now I can remember. I can remember how shocked and scared I was. They saw me though, and if Arthur questions me about it today I'll know what I saw was real.'

Gaius stroked his chin curiously before looking back at Merlin.

'If what you say is true, why would Guinevere's spirit still be in Camelot?' He asked and Merlin seemed to know the answer already.

'Magic,' he said briefly. 'She's either using it to see Arthur or using it to make him weaker. It would make sense for her to want revenge after he executed her. But I can't imagine Guinevere doing anything like that no matter what he had done.'

'All we know is that she is playing with his head. And if what you saw was real, she needs to be stopped.'

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><p>Taking deep breaths, Merlin approached Arthur with a sword in his hand and a shield in his other. He stopped a few feet away from him. At first Arthur only glared at him and Merlin took this time to pray that he would not be badly hurt. Then the young king charged at him and Merlin stumbled back with the shielding protecting his face.<p>

Arthur's first blow smashed into Merlin's shield and he heard the wood crack, but it did not break. He seemed disappointed and he carried on attacking the vulnerable Merlin. Elyan, Gwaine, Leon and Percival stood not far away laughing as they watched Arthur's servant being beaten.

'Come on, Merlin!' Cried Gwaine with a smile. 'Try harder.'

'I can't exactly kill the king,' Merlin managed when he got the chance. Arthur stopped tackling him and stepped back. His blue eyes narrowed at the poor, little, excuse of a man and he laughed.

'Do you really think you can beat me, Merlin?' Arthur asked still laughing. Merlin's eyes adverted to the knights who were chuckling.

'I reckon so,' he gulped in response and the knights were literally rolling on the grass, roaring with laughter. Arthur tried his best not to join them, and he wielded his sword back on forth.

'Alright then, Sir Merlin,' he sneered. 'This is your chance to prove that you are worthy of being a great knight!'

'Err I don't think that's necessary, my king,' Merlin tried to escape what he had been told to do. 'It is clear that you umm are better than me.'

In the background the others chanted chicken and other names of weak animals.

'Are you a coward, Merlin?' Arthur snapped and Merlin raised his brow.

'No,' he shot back calmly.

'Then pick up your sword.' Arthur got into a ready-position with his knees bent and his two hands grasping the hilt of his sword. Merlin's gaze dropped to the sword at his feet which must have fallen out of his hand while he was being attacked. Hastily he bent over and snatched the sword from the ground. He stood up to his original height and copied Arthur's ready-position. The chants in the background slowly died down.

Merlin looked into Arthur's eyes, he saw anger and fury in them. Possibly from last night when he had noticed Merlin spying on him? The young warlock gulped, the only thing he did was assist Arthur and use magic...and he wasn't even that good at doing the chores Arthur told him to do.

Arthur looked past Merlin and saw Guinevere in the distance. She smiled at him and mimed the words 'don't hurt him'. Although Arthur wanted to hurt Merlin, he was bewitched by Guinevere's smile and was forced to smile back.

Meanwhile, Merlin was looking at Arthur like he was a fool. He looked behind himself and saw a woman standing in the distance. Guinevere. He didn't get a good look at her because he looked back just in time to block Arthur's first attack.

The knights began to cheer in the background as the two men fought. Merlin fought to the best of his ability while Arthur fought gently, but still managed to beat him. The young warlock dropped to his knees. His sword had skidded across the grass and landed out of his reach. Arthur stood above him with the blade of his sword aiming at Merlin's eye. He soon lowered it and Merlin felt relieved.

'Not bad for a servant,' Arthur said what he thought was a compliment. He helped Merlin to his feet and gave him a comforting smile. The servant looked confused, Arthur's eyes were now calm and heart-warming.

The other knights began to practise while Merlin and Arthur stared at each other.

'Who was that?' Merlin decided to bring the subject of Guinevere up.

'What?' Was Arthur's response.

'Behind me a few moments ago.'

'Nobody was there, Merlin, what is wrong with you today?'

'Nothing is wrong with me, but there is something wrong with you. That woman behind me was the same woman in your arms last night.'

'So it was you who was spying on me last night. I should have you punished.'

'Punish me all you want, but all I ask is who was she.'

Arthur hesitated and his gaze dropped.

'I was messing around with one of the servant girls,' he lied.

'Oh sure, then no one must be able to see the servant girl, then you must have done something which you could never forgive yourself for,' Merlin was getting carried away.

'Merlin!'

'And that girl looks a lot like Gwen, perhaps it is her sister?'

'MERLIN!'

Arthur attracted the attention of the other knights who had now stopped from sword fighting. Merlin fell silent and Arthur dragged him away from the others.

'What are you trying to say, Merlin?' Arthur snapped when he finished dragging his servant. 'Remember that I am your king.'

'And I am also your friend. I only want you to admit it,' replied Merlin.

'Admit what?'

'That you saw Guinevere last night, today, and I expect that you have been seeing her for a while.'

Arthur's mouth opened in shock and grip loosened on Merlin's sleeve.

'How dare you say such a thing,' gasped Arthur with his eyes focused on the ground below his feet.

'I know you think you're imagining her,' began Merlin. 'But I've seen her too and I think she's a spirit haunting Camelot. In order to know the truth, I need to know everything and I mean _everything_.'

For a moment Arthur stood giving him the angriest stare he had ever given anyone in his life. Then the anger in his eyes disappeared and the storm inside him slowly died down. He ran a large hand through his soft blonde hair before looking back at Merlin. Their eyes met and Arthur nodded in agreement.


	5. Chapter IIII

**CHAPTER FOUR**

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><p>With one strong push, the door swung open and nearly fell off its hinges. Immediately Gaius looked up from his dusty book and slowly tilted his head forward in order to reveal his old cautious eyes which were hidden behind his glasses. From the doorway Merlin strolled towards him with his eyes fixed on his and fists clenching and unclenching.<p>

Gaius slammed his book shut and dropped it onto the desk at the sight of him.

'I know Arthur and I are not imagining her,' was the first Merlin said. 'He's been seeing her for weeks and now I've seen her.'

'So is she evil or not?' Gaius asked.

'I don't think so... all they do is cuddle and kiss and all that. She just wants to see him.'

'I have to admit, part of me is quite surprised. Arthur executed her but still she wants to be with him?'

'True love conquers all.'

Gaius raised a curious eyebrow.

'And you would know?' He asked while smirking.

'Yeah w-w-well,' Merlin found himself stuttering and the old man could only smile.

'Guinevere may know this or she may not, but she is stopping Arthur from focusing on ruling and protecting his kingdom. She needs to stop and cross over.'

Merlin agreed by hanging his head past his shoulders.

'How do I stop her, then?' He finally asked and Gaius gave him a stern look.

'Oh you'll figure something out, you're Merlin,' he replied with a smile. At first the young warlock shot a surprised look at him, and then he remembered that he had magic. With that he went away and helped himself to a couple of books scattered across the shelves.

Hours past by and Merlin found nothing about making a ghost cross over in his books. His eyes were a little red and he let out a sigh.

Suddenly his eyes came across a spell, a spell which could make a spirit appear in front of you. Maybe if he could come face to face with Gwen, he could get her to leave him alone. Merlin's finger ran over the spell printed in the book. His eyes narrowed and he pursed his lips. All he had to do was to add a couple herbs to boiling water, then say the spell and add one of Guinevere's possessions.

At these words Merlin let out a groan and crashed his head onto the wooden table in front of him. How on earth was he going to get one of Guinevere's possessions? She was dead and she never told Merlin about her most loved possessions. Apart from Arthur... but Merlin couldn't exactly boil him in water and herbs without getting caught.

The next idea which entered Merlin's mind was that he could search her house for belongings. But Arthur had them removed from her house and had the house sold. Never would he had burned them or sold them. They were probably kept somewhere safe where only the King could find them. There was only one thing Merlin could do.

'Arthur?' He asked with a childish voice as he entered the King's chambers after knocking on the door. Arthur looked up from his papers and his quill was just about being balanced in his pale hand.

'What is it now, Merlin?' He moaned as he went back to his papers.

'I want to ask you something.'

'Yes...?'

'Where are Guinevere's possessions?'

Arthur hesitated before looking up at his servant like he was a bigger fool than he thought he was.

'Why?' He finally asked and Merlin began to open and close his mouth like a goldfish. There was no point of lying to him.

'I wanted to take one,' Merlin spat out.

'Over my dead body,' hissed Arthur before jumping to his feet furiously.

'Dangerous words.'

The two young men exchanged looks, and then Merlin thought what on earth was he on about?

'You would kill me for these possessions?' Arthur questioned as he began to slowly approach him.

'If necessary,' Merlin lied as he forced himself back against the door. Arthur drew his sword and brought the blade to eye level.

'Not literally,' added the young warlock nervously as his eyes met the glistening blade.

'Good, off you go then,' replied Arthur calmly after he had returned his sword to its scabbard. Merlin tilted his head to the left in confusion.

'Is that it?' He asked.

'I'd hate to kill a servant.'

'I just threatened to kill you and...'

'Where is this going, Merlin?'

Merlin allowed himself to shut up, he was right: where was this going? He hadn't come to Arthur to kill him, he had come for Guinevere's possessions.

'Oh, please!' He implored as he took quick steps towards his master.

'Why?' Arthur asked again as he sat back down onto his chair.

'I only want small one, just to remember her. Guinevere was like a sister to me- I want something to hold, knowing that she held it too.'

Merlin bowed his head and buried it in his hands, hoping to fool Arthur into thinking that he was crying. But the young king only laughed at him.

'You'll make a fine actor,' he commented as his laughter died down. 'But you can have one small thing, I suppose she would have allowed it.'

With that he bent over and opened a drawer of his desk. He took out some items before finding what he was looking for. In his hands was a beautiful hair slide, the one she had been wearing when she was executed. Merlin instantly recognised it, she wore it every day ever since he had first met her. No one knew where she got it from; but all knew that she loved it. Who could not? The crystal flower attached to the top of it was beautiful and unique. If she didn't love it so much, she would have sold it and would have received a lot of money.

'You have seen Guinevere wearing this,' Arthur expected with his eyes fixed on Merlin. The servant nodded twice and stepped forward to collect it.

'Take good care of it,' Arthur added with a scowl.

'It's for a good cause,' Merlin replied and what he said was true. He had just lied about wanting something to remember Guinevere by. He remembered her in his heart and cherished the times they had together.

Hastily Arthur handed the hair slide to Merlin and Merlin took it gracefully. He thanked him before leaving the chambers as fast as he could. On his way to the Gaius, he looked down at the beautiful object in his hands. If he boiled it with the other herbs, he would never get it back. He knew how much she loved this hair slide. It could have been from someone close who was no more.

Merlin let out a sigh. He couldn't lose this, it was too precious. He'd have to find something else... but how?

Merlin returned to Gaius and found him preparing dinner like he always did in the evenings.

'Good spell,' Gaius said when he was greeted by the presence of the young warlock. Merlin narrowed his brow in confusion, but then saw Gaius signal to the open magic spell book on the wooden table with his wooden spoon.

'I know,' agreed Merlin as he sat down at the wooden table. He slammed the book shut before running his fingers over the hard back cover.

'There's only one problem,' he added.

'What is that?' Gaius questioned and Merlin let out a sigh before pulling out the beautiful hair slide from his pocket. Gaius immediately recognised it and he sat down at the table with his eyes glued to it. The old man found himself quivering.

'Merlin, you can't boil that!' He exclaimed, 'it's too precious.'

'I know,' Merlin moaned as he rested his head on the book. 'What am I going to do?'

It took a couple of moments for Gaius to come up with a reasonable suggestion.'

'Search the prison cell she was held in the night before she died for anything she might have left behind there,' he decided and Merlin agreed.

'I'll go right away,' he said before standing up and running out through the doorway.

When he arrived in the prisons, he noticed two guards sat at a wooden table talking and drinking. From the top of the staircase, he looked down at them while thinking of something to do. Suddenly a brilliant idea entered his head and he grabbed a bucket and cloth from nearby. Then he casually walked down the steps, hoping to be seen or heard by the guards.

Thankfully he was heard and the two guards turned to look at him. Immediately they jumped to his feet and unsheathed their swords. They realised it was only Arthur's servant and they lowered their blades.

'What do you want, boy?' One of them hissed.

'Err Arthur sent me to clear out the prison cells,' Merlin lied nervously.

'Did he now?' One of them ventured towards the young warlock with intentions to scare him. But Merlin couldn't be frightened so easily.

'Yes, unless you want to do it.' Merlin's lips curved into a cheeky smile and he held out the bucket and cloth to the guard. The guard gave him an annoyed look before allowing him to pass.

Merlin walked by while feeling quite proud of himself. He opened the cell where he remembered seeing Guinevere being thrown into. Stepping in there brought back so many painful memories. Guinevere's screams and cries bouncing off the hard stone walls. Merlin imagined her curled up in the corner. Tears rolling down her face as she cried out Arthur's name again and again.

Merlin looked away from the terrible thought and began searching the small piles of hay for anything which belonged to her. His eyes came across something circular and covered in dust. He reached forward and grabbed it. He wiped the dust off it with the back of his hand. It looked like a plain silver bracelet. Merlin had seen Guinevere wearing it, Lancelot had given it to her when he returned. He had given them all presents... apart from Merlin surprisingly. But then it wasn't the real Lancelot.

Merlin slipped it into his pocket and pretended to clean for a little longer so the guards wouldn't get suspicious before leaving. He returned to Gaius as quickly as he could with the bracelet in his grasp.

'I've found one!' He cried as he entered the room.

'Let me see,' was Gaius' response and he traipsed over to Merlin. He looked down at the peculiar item and narrowed his eyes.

'What on earth is that?' He finally asked and Merlin shrugged.

'I don't know, but it belonged to Guinevere- I saw her wearing it,' he replied and Gaius nodded.

Gaius opened up a wooden box and took out the herbs needed for the spell to work.

'I already got these for you, fresh from the woods,' he explained as he handed them to Merlin. Merlin thanked him and Gaius only half smiled.

'The quicker Guinevere crosses over, the better Arthur will become,' he added as Merlin was gathering the objects that were needed to perform the spell.

Once the water was boiling in the cauldron, he added the herbs and the bracelet. The bracelet immediately sank to the bottom and couldn't be seen. Merlin glanced at Gaius who nodded before saying the spell. He had memorized the words earlier and spoke them directly to the cauldron.

Suddenly, the water began to boil rapidly. Was it working? Merlin and Gaius didn't dare to venture forward and take a look.

'Come on,' whispered Merlin through his gritted teeth.

With a roar a mixture of mushy herbs and water spilled out of the cauldron and onto the floor. Merlin and Gaius jumped back in order to not get wet. They waited for a while to see if anything was happening... but nothing did. Confused, Merlin strolled over to the cauldron and looked inside.

There was the silver bracelet, it was a cheap metal and it could have been destroyed easily by that boiling water. As he closed his eyes, he reached out his hand and touched the skin of the bracelet, expecting to scream like a girl and rush around because of the heat of it. Instead he wavered because it was so cold.

'What is this?' Merlin gasped as he picked it up and brought it over to Gaius. Gaius examined it and he noticed some symbols printed on the side of the bracelet. They must have appeared there recently because Merlin hadn't noticed them earlier.

'What are they?' Merlin questioned Gaius, and Gaius suddenly looked troubled.

'These are symbols of the old religion,' he began to explain, 'Morgana's work.'


	6. Chapter V

**CHAPTER FIVE**

* * *

><p>Merlin couldn't sleep the night they had found the symbols of the old religion on that bracelet. To think that Guinevere had been wearing it was worrying. Why would Guinevere need something magical from Morgana? Unless it was for evil...<p>

Merlin shot out of bed and rested against his bedroom wall. Surely Guinevere wasn't evil! He massaged his temples to help himself think. Then he soon remembered that Lancelot had given the bracelet to Guinevere as a gift. Merlin and Gaius both knew that it was a fake Lancelot who was serving Morgana. Merlin yawned and paced up and down his room. He knew he needed to sort this out but he couldn't think while he was so tired.

There was only one thing he could do. Merlin left his bedroom in search of the bracelet. He carefully crept past the snoring Gaius laid across the bench with a blue blanket briefly covering him. He made no sound as he lifted up various objects to find the bracelet. Through the corner of his eye he saw something shining and glistening. Slowly he spun around and became face to face with the bracelet which was in Gaius' grasp.

Merlin let out a quiet moan and he knelt down next to Gaius, his eyes fixed on his target. He felt like a predator after his prey when he reached forward to snatch the bracelet. At that very moment Gaius snored loudly and shuffled over on the bench. His arm was now hanging down with his fingers briefly clutching the bracelet.

The young warlock smiled as he dived in to gently take the bracelet. He succeeded and as soon as he did, he jumped to his feet and slipped away back to his bedroom. In his bed he lit a candle and studied the bracelet with his sharp eyes. His fingers traced the symbols printed on the side. This bracelet could not be destroyed so easily, Merlin had already tried that without knowing he was dealing with serious magic. This bracelet had been enchanted and he intended to find out why.

Guinevere had always had feelings for Lancelot, even Arthur knew. But the whole of Camelot was shocked when she did what she did. It was not like Gwen to do that, she loved Arthur more than Lancelot and she was soon to be his wife. She would only do it if she was encha-

Merlin's eyes widened and he sat up almost immediately. That was it! Morgana had enchanted the bracelet to make Guinevere become attracted to Lancelot. Merlin felt quite proud of himself, but he also felt very distraught. Guinevere had been executed for something she had no control over. If Merlin told Arthur, there was no doubt that he would feel ashamed. But maybe this was stopping Guinevere from crossing over. She needed to find peace in this world in order to move to the next.

Merlin let out a helpless sigh. It would be heard to say it to Arthur and it would be even harder to get him to believe it. If anyone could convince Arthur, it was Gaius. Gaius had been a trusted ally of Camelot for as long as Arthur could remember. He was like an uncle to Arthur and the young King listens and considers his ideas.

The following morning, Merlin was much wiser and waited until Gaius woke up instead of jumping on him like before.

'Gaius,' Merlin addressed him and Gaius looked up from cauldron, 'I think I've solved the mystery of the bracelet.'

Gaius went back to stirring whatever was in his cauldron.

'The mystery had already been solved, Merlin. We knew that Morgana had it placed on Guinevere for something evil but the only question is 'why?'' He explained with his gaze lowered.

'Well I know_ why_,' replied Merlin in an almost mocking way.

Gaius looked up from his cauldron and waited to hear the young warlock's answer.

'We know that Lancelot gave the bracelet to Guinevere as a present,' began Merlin as he began to pace up and down. 'And we also know that Lancelot was a fake and was working for Morgana. I think that Morgana enchanted the bracelet with a spell to make Gwen become attracted to Lancelot. Lancelot gave the bracelet to Gwen and she wore it until she arrived in the prison cell. I don't know why she took it off, she probably was angry with him.'

There was a moment of silence before one of them opened their mouth to speak.

'That is probably correct,' commented Gaius with a slight nod of his head. 'But how will Arthur believe the truth?'

'Now that is when you come in!' Merlin exclaimed with a smile printed on his face. Gaius raised one eye brow. 'Arthur will believe you when you show him the bracelet with the old religion symbols. Then you can make up something like this bracelet was forged in the love enchantment fire...!'

'I am not lying to the king, Merlin.'

'We lie every day, Gaius! I do magic and you protect me, what we are doing is against the law.'

'But still, I shall not. I will tell the absolute truth which is what we know. He probably has seen Guinevere wearing the bracelet and we can prove it was Morgana's work when we show him the symbols of the old religion.'

'Fine ok, I suppose that _can _work.'

'It _will _work, and I'm quite shocked that you would lie to Arthur for no reason.'

'Sorry, I was just thinking of ways for him to believe us.'

Gaius nodded to show that he understood, then he walked over to Merlin and took the bracelet from him.

'We'll go to the King in the evening,' he said before going back to stirring the cauldron.


	7. Chapter VI

**CHAPTER SIX**

* * *

><p>The doors opened of the Great Hall and Gaius and Merlin stepped in. At their arrival many turned around to face them, including Arthur. Gaius scrutinized their faces with his old eyes; he had hoped that there would not be an audience. Merlin had hoped for the same and the two of them ventured closer to the young king.<p>

Arthur gave them a heart warming smile.

'Gaius, Merlin,' he addressed them still smiling. 'What brings you here?'

Gaius and Merlin exchanged looks before replying.

'We have an important matter to discuss with you, my Lord,' replied Gaius and Arthur nodded. His eyes scanned the two of them curiously.

'In private,' added Merlin and Arthur's eyes turned to the people around him.

'Very well,' he said and slowly the people left the hall through the open doors. They closed behind them and Gaius felt more comfortable.

'We have recently discovered something, my Lord,' Gaius said after he had heard the loud noise of the doors clashing together as they closed.

'Feel free to share your knowledge with me,' Arthur replied calmly.

Gaius reached into his pocket and took out the silver bracelet which made the king's eyes slightly widen.

'It was Guin-' began Merlin.

'I know,' Arthur interrupted him with his gaze fixed on the bracelet in Gaius' hands. 'Why do you bring this to me?'

'We found this in her prison cell,' Gaius began to explain. 'It may have fallen off her wrist or she may have taken it off on purpose. I've examined this bracelet very closely and...there are symbols of the old religion on the side.'

Arthur's eyes slightly widened and he strolled over to the old man before taking it from him. The symbols shone brightly and it was clear that they were magical.

'What are you suggesting?' The young king asked, horrified. 'That Guinevere was practising sorcery?'

'No, no,' Gaius said twice while shaking his head. 'Lancelot had given this to Gwen as a gift. Ever since she first put it on she become attracted to him. I think this was the work of Morgana.'

'Lancelot wasn't really alive?'

'No, my Lord. Morgana made his body but the body did not have Lancelot's soul. She gave him this to put on Gwen so she would fall in love with him.'

'But why?'

'I suppose she didn't want Gwen sitting on her throne.'

Arthur looked like he was going to faint, he stumbled back onto the table.

'What have I done?' He asked himself while shaking his head. 'Guinevere was innocent...and I killed her.'

'Arthur, you did not know,' Merlin reminded him as he ran to his side. 'You were only doing what you thought was right.'

'She was innocent...'

Arthur's eyes began to water and he tried to avoid eye contact with Merlin and Gaius.

'My Lord-' Gaius tried to comfort him.

'Go, please. Both of you!' Cried the young king as tears began to escape from his eyes. Gaius and Merlin did not question what Arthur had asked. They looked at each other and left the hall silently.

Two guards were about to go in but Gaius stopped them.

'The king needs to be alone right now,' he told them and they nods. Both of them turned to look at the closed doors leading to the hall when they heard quiet sobs coming from behind them.

Arthur wiped his eyes but the tears wouldn't stop coming. He murmured Guinevere's name again and again before collapsing to the floor. His hands covered his head and he carried on crying.

In a flash, Guinevere appeared before him. Her soft hair flowing down her back and her brown eyes full of enough love to melt a dragon's heart. At the sight of her love spread about the floor, she tilted her head to the side and narrowed her eyes confusingly.

'My love, what is wrong?' She finally asked him and Arthur looked up from the floor when he heard her voice. She looked like an angel from above; the sunlight shining through the glass windows and peering over her shoulders and head. Arthur's sobs died down but his tears did not stop flowing.

'I'm so sorry,' he managed through his tears. 'You are innocent.'

'Innocent? No! I committed a terrible crime and I deserved to have lost my life.'

'No, you didn't. You were under Morgana's spell to fall in love with Lancelot.'

Guinevere's gaze dropped to the floor beneath her feet and she shook her head softly.

'You are wrong!' She cried, refusing to believe it.

'The bracelet,' sobbed Arthur quietly but loud enough for her to hear, 'Lancelot gave it to you but Morgana had put a spell on it. He wasn't the real Lancelot, he was working for Morgana!'

'That's a lie, Lancelot gave me that bracelet which he got from the tribe who rescued him.'

'He _lied_, he lied to us all.'

Guinevere dropped to the floor and began to cry. Arthur reached out his hand towards her but she refused to take it.

'He tricked us all,' Arthur tried to tell her but she slowly slid away from him. At the sight of this he began to shake his head and more tears began to slip down his red cheeks. 'Please, don't do this, my love...'

'I am not your love!' She spat with tears rolling down her face like a waterfall. 'I am nothing but a servant girl who was executed for something she had no control over. How could you!'

With that, she began to disappear while weeping to herself. Soon she was gone and Arthur was left alone in the hall.

'Guinevere...no...please!' He cried, his sobs echoing around the hall. 'Guinevere! Come back! Guinevere!'

But she did not come to Arthur, she did not come to him when he needed her the most.


	8. Chapter VII

**CHAPTER SEVEN**

* * *

><p>After opening the door of the king's chambers, Gaius stepped out into the hallway and closed it behind him. Merlin turned around to face him, his face pale and his eyes full of fear for Arthur.<p>

'Will he be ok?' He asked Gaius.

'He is full of shock, every now and again he calls out for Guinevere. Perhaps we should never have told him,' Gaius sighed.

'No, Arthur deserved to know even though it would affect him for the rest of his life.'

The old man shrugged and glanced nervously at the door. Arthur's cries could be heard from outside of the king's chambers.

'How will he get better?' Merlin asked, Gaius shrugged again before replying.

'No medicine can cure what he has brought upon himself,' he said before walking away.

Merlin sighed and glanced around, thinking of things to do and how they might help Arthur in this situation. He couldn't just sit back and watch him suffer. An idea appeared in his mind: what if he tried to contact Guinevere again.

After thinking of this, Merlin rushed back to his room and grabbed the items he had used before when he tried to contact Guinevere. He trembled when his eyes met the beautiful hair clip which lay on his bedside table. He had no other choice, that was the only item which belonged to Guinevere which Merlin had. With a sigh he reached forward and took it in his hands. Gazing at its beauty, he forced himself over to the cauldron and took a deep breath.

He added the ingredients needed before hastily added the hair clip. It sunk gracefully to the bottom and as soon as it did, Merlin wanted to reach in and grab it. He spoke the magic words and the water began to glow brightly. It reacted differently to how it had to Morgana's charmed bracelet. Merlin could feel the power working, the innocent hair clip being melted by his strong magic.

From the cauldron rose something which looked like a water maiden, covering her face with her hands and leaning against the cauldron. Then the water maiden transformed into Guinevere. It was the first time Merlin had been so close to her in months. She was sobbing quietly and this caused the smile printed on the young warlock's lips to vanish.

A few seconds passed and Guinevere's hands dropped from her face; she glanced around with a confused facial expression. Her eyes stopped moving when they gazed upon Merlin standing not far from her.

'Merlin?' She said out loud, refusing to believe what was happening. 'How could this be? I was in the dungeons a moment ago-'

'I brought you here,' Merlin interrupted her, hoping that she'd understand that he knew. She did not question what he had said. She stepped away from him with her eyes slightly narrowed.

'What were you doing in the dungeons, Gwen?' He chose to ask her.

Her gaze dropped to the ground beneath her feet. 'Hiding...crying.'

'Crying? Why?'

Guinevere chose to take a stroll around the room.

'Arthur told me the truth,' she began to explain, 'that I was innocent. He had me executed for no reason. I was innocent, Merlin!'

Tears of sadness began to slip down her pink cheeks and she tried to avoid contact with Merlin.

'Arthur didn't know,' Merlin tried to comfort her.

'Exactly! He did not know, he did not know the _truth_. He jumped to conclusions and had me executed as quickly as he could. He did not stop for one moment to think that I was under a spell,' Guinevere spat.

'Anyone with common sense would have assumed that you were having an affair when they had found you kissing another, Arthur did what he was expected to do.'

'He always does what he is expected to do. He's always worried about what other people may think of his actions.'

'And you were meant to help him with this; once you were queen.'

'It's too hard, Merlin!'

She looked away sadly.

'It was too hard,' she added truthfully, remembering the fact that she was nothing but a wandering spirit. Merlin swallowed hard and took a step closer to Guinevere.

'Arthur's hurt, he is in his chambers and Gaius said it will take a while for him to recover. You don't want Arthur to become like Uther when he lost Morgana, do you? A lifeless king who needed others to rule for him. The people of Camelot will begin to think that Arthur is weak, you and I both know that that is not true,' he explained.

'Why should I care?'

'Because you love him, Guinevere. You may also hate him at this moment but nothing can stop you from loving him. If you really love him, you'd help him.'

Guinevere hesitated for a moment, taking in Merlin's wise words and accepting them as the truth.

'How can I help him?' she finally asked. 'I'm nothing but a spirit trapped in this world.'

'_Trapped_?' Merlin asked confusingly.

'Something is stopping me from crossing over, I don't know what it is.'

'Perhaps when we have helped Arthur we can focus on helping you cross over.'

'I said some cruel things to him after he told me the truth.'

'Do you forgive him?'

'No.'

Merlin gave Guinevere a look, a frown digging deep into his face.

'Do you love him?' He asked next.

'I think you know the answer to that, Merlin,' she said hoarsely.

'Then you will forgive him in time. Go to him and tell him you forgive him.'

With a nod, Guinevere slowly began to fade until she had disappeared before Merlin eyes. He left the room and rushed down the corridors with intentions to go to Arthur's chambers. He slipped past the guards and arrived at the door. The two knights guarding it stared down at him.

'Gaius thinks it is best that you go, Arthur is in a difficult position at the moment,' Merlin lied.

'Since when do we take orders from Gaius?' One of the guards questioned.

'Since the King is not capable of giving orders himself; and seeing that Gaius is the only man he listens to and trusts- I suggest you listen to him.'

The two guards glanced at each other before walking away. Merlin looked back at them and smiled, it was up to Guinevere to do the rest.


	9. Chapter VIII

**CHAPTER EIGHT**

* * *

><p>Guinevere appeared in the darkest corner of Arthur's chambers. Seeing him lying there in bed was enough to convince her that he needed her at this moment. Slowly she took small steps towards him and stopped at the foot of the bed. She waited until he noticed her, which did not take long. Arthur sat up immediately at the sight of her. His eyes wide open in shock, but he was so ecsatic now that she was here.<p>

His lips curved into a smile, it felt so good to smile. He hadn't had the feeling for a long time and he remembered that it was a nice feeling. His smile disappeared from his face when he saw that Guinevere wasn't smiling. She didn't look happy either. His memory came back, he remembered seeing her crying in the hall. He remembered her telling him that she didn't belong to him.

Then it hit him, Arthur collapsed back onto his bed. He remembered that he had executed Guinevere even though she was innocent...and now she was haunting Camelot. Arthur expected her to take revenge in any way. He could picture her destroying him or even his kingdom; the kingdom she was suppose to rule.

'Why are you here?' Arthur had selected one of the many buzzing questions from his mind and had asked it.

'I was wrong to have spoken to you like that,' Guinevere admitted with a sigh.

'Does this mean you forgive me?'

'No.' She said sharply and Arthur swallowed hard.

She added, 'how can I? Not yet anyway.'

'I understand,' he mumbled.

'No, you don't. I can't forget something like this so quickly.'

'I never asked you to forget it, Guinevere.'

'But that is what you want me to do. To put it behind us? Even though there is no us, not anymore.'

'You are here now, we can live together. Dead or alive.'

Guinevere smiled briefly, 'that would be nice. But you need a queen.'

'You are my queen,' Arthur shot back desperately.

'A queen who no one else can see?'

'Do they need to see?'

'Arthur! The people will think you have gone mad.'

'Let them think I have gone mad if it means I get to be with you. I don't want to lose you again.'

Guinevere hesitated before replying.

'A few months ago you had me executed because you were scared of what your people would think of you. Now you don't care,' she muttered.

'Because love conquers all. My father also lost my mother, in order to have me. Sometimes...sometimes I think he regretted it. I was so stupid to execute you, I acted just like my father had. I made my decision so quickly without even stopping to think about it. But now, I've been so blessed, here you stand before me-I've been given another chance!' Arthur explained.

Guinevere strolled up to him and perched on the edge of his bed.

'I love you,' she began with a smile, 'I love you very much; but one day you'll have to let me go. We both know that.'

'If you want to stay, you don't have to go,' Arthur responded. 'You don't want to go, that's why you're here with me. Because you want to be with _me_, don't you?'

Guinevere felt her mouth opening and closing like a goldfish. How could she respond to that? Yes, she wanted to stay; but she did not know if this was why she was trapped in this world. She forced herself to advert her eyes somewhere else.

'I do not know why I am still here,' she finally said and Arthur shook his head, refusing to believe it.

'Don't deny it, Guinevere. We are meant for each other,' he told her. Guinevere was starting to believe him, fate had given them a second chance to be together...they should not waste it.

She bent her head towards him and pecked his forehead.

'I am yours,' she told him with a smile. 'I am with you forever.'

**Sorry for such a short chapter (I think it's short anyway) but I thought it should end with Gwen saying that because this chapter is all about Arthur changing her mind. You can probably sense that the story is coming to an soon, but I am thinking about writing a sequel to this. The epilogue will determine everything. Please review and tell me if it would be a good idea to write a sequel to this. Would you all read and review it if I did (please do)?**


	10. Chapter VIIII

**CHAPTER NINE**

* * *

><p>Merlin was not surprised when he was told by the other Knights of Camelot that Arthur had made a miraculous recovery. Nor was he when he was told that the King was completing his regular tasks and activities, attending meetings with the court and much more. He always smiled when he heard these words; it made him happy to know that he hadn't saved Arthur's life (for once)... but Guinevere had. Only she could have helped him in the situation he was in, and Merlin was glad that she had succeeded.<p>

In the afternoon, Arthur attended sword fighting practise and so did Merlin. The knights laughed together and this made Merlin happier.

'You seem happy, Arthur,' he teased the young king and Arthur couldn't help but smile.

'How can I not be?' He said as if he was speaking to himself. He looked up at the sky and treated each breath he took like a gift. 'I have Guinevere, how can I be sad?'

'Arthur, you know she won't be here always- she's a ghost.'

'A ghost who I can see, we can be together now. Can't you see it, Merlin?'

'I don't think she'd agree...'

'She already has.'

Merlin's smile vanished from his face and he narrowed his brow confusingly.

'Wait, what?' He asked Arthur and the young king simply smiled.

'She said she is mine _forever_. And forever is a long time,' he replied.

'Indeed it is. Are you sure that she didn't mean she'd be forever in your heart?'

'I managed to persuade her to stay.'

'Arthur...you can't.'

Arthur shot a stern look at his servant.

'Why not? I am the king,' he snapped.

'You should not abuse that fact. The people will think you have gone mad, talking to a woman who no one else can see,' Merlin managed.

'You can see her, Merlin.'

'That is a different matter. But the people-'

'I don't care what the people think anymore, Merlin! I lost Guinevere once because of them, I won't lose her again. The people should respect me as their ally and also as their king. I can do whatever I like.'

With that, the angry Arthur turned and walked away. He joined the other knights and began to laugh with them like nothing had ever happened. Merlin couldn't believe what was happening. What was Arthur thinking? And Guinevere...he thought she understood what would happen if she stayed. Merlin had no choice, he had to send her to the other world before she corrupted Arthur's life even more.

That night Merlin lay on his bed thinking of things to do. He had already used Guinevere's possession which he had been given. He'd look suspicious if he asked Arthur for another one. He would have to hope that he would bump into her some time. He knew where to find her- where she always was...Arthur's chambers.

The following morning Merlin got dressed and rushed down to the King's Chambers where he hoped to find Guinevere. To his surprise, the door was slightly ajar and this made Merlin nervous. Slowly, he pushed open the door and stepped in. He called out Arthur's name and waited in silent to hear a reply. But not a sound could be heard.

Merlin repeated his name as he ventured further into the chambers. Glancing around for any sign of movement or a sudden sound.

'Merlin?' Asked a voice from behind him. As fast as lightning, Merlin swivelled around on his heels to stand in the direction the voice came from. He relaxed when he saw Guinevere standing in the doorway. Her long hair tied back in a bun and her brow narrowed in confusion.

'Why are you here?' She asked confusingly.

'To speak to you,' Merlin answered immediately. Guinevere dropped her arms to her sides in response.

'Well here I am.'

The young warlock took a deep breath.

'Did you agree to stay here and live with Arthur?' He had selected a question from the many buzzing around in his head waiting to be asked. She nodded slowly before replying.

'Yes, I did,' she admitted with no shame.

'Why, Guinevere? You know what will happen. I thought you understood.'

'I understand perfectly well. Fate has given Arthur and I another chance to be together, we should not waste it.'

'It's not fate, Guinevere.'

'Then what is it?'

'A mistake!' Merlin had finally let it out. 'You're a mistake, you're not meant to be here and you know it. You're stopping Arthur from living a normal life. A relationship between the living and dead is not meant to take place, it's not allowed!'

Tears filled Guinevere's eyes and her gaze dropped.

'What was I thinking?' She asked herself. 'I'm only being selfish if I stay here. How can I go to the other world, Merlin?'

'I'm not sure,' He admitted with a sigh. 'Maybe you have to find peace in this world before you cross over to the next.'

'How can I do that?'

'Was anything troubling you before you died?'

'No, not that I know of.'

'Then there is only one other possible solution.'

Guinevere stepped back a little towards the door. She had a feeling that she wasn't going to like what Merlin was going to say.

'And what would that be?' She finally asked, dreading the words that would come out of his mouth.

'You'll have to visit the place where you died,' Merlin said...


	11. Chapter X

**CHAPTER TEN**

* * *

><p>Merlin's stern words lingered in Guinevere's head like an image from an old dream. She buried her forehead in her palm and sighed. Her life was falling apart...although she didn't have a life. Sometimes she wished that she really had died. Sometimes it was too much for her, coping with the fact that she was dead and had been executed by the one she loved.<p>

As much as she wanted to stay here, she knew it was wrong. Arthur wanted her to stay but he had murdered her in the first place. She told him she had forgiven him but there is always a small amount of hate in her heart for him. Every time she looked at him she wanted to scream and cry out loud.

'Why did you have to do it, Arthur?' She asked herself, her voice barely a whisper. She swallowed hard to keep the tears in her eyes. She hated him but she also loved him; and those two things were the key to someone's heart. It didn't make sense to her. How can you love someone you hate? Although she spent a while trying to figure it out, she never thought of a reasonable answer.

_There is no answer, _she thought to herself_, its nature_.

Her gaze slowly turned to the scaffold where she was executed. She sat on a bench and stared at it from a distance. Even though she was far away it still seemed impregnable and loomed over her. It was her worst nightmare. The demon which scared her, the image which made her stir in her sleep. What could be more frightening that visiting the place where you died?

_Merlin must be out of his mind_, she thought as she shook her head in disbelief, _surely he sees that it would ruin me if I visited the place where I died. Nothing could be more dreadful!_

Merlin appeared in the distance and began to approach her. He glanced around cautiously to ensure that there was no one around as he walked. His eyes met the dark scaffold as he passed it. It brought back too many painful memories and also frightened him.

'Guinevere,' he greeted her when he reached her.

'I can't do this Merlin,' she gasped. He patted her back and tried to give her a heart warming smile.

'Take a deep breath,' he said.

'Don't you think I've tried that? Can't you see that I can't do this?'

'I know it'll be hard but we have no other choice.'

'I'm sure you know a spell which can sort this out.'

'I don't know everything...yet. Close your eyes when you approach it.'

'Are you certain this will work?'

Merlin smiled.

'Positive, my spell book said so,' he replied.

'But it didn't have a spell to send a ghost to the other world,' mumbled Guinevere.

'It'll be over soon.'

'Ok...I have to see Arthur first though.'

Merlin didn't stop her from vanishing and appearing in the King's chambers. She paced around in search of Arthur and half smiled when she saw him.

'Guinevere,' he said with a smile and he took her in his arms. She rested her head on his shoulder and inhaled his scent. She loved being with him, feeling him, loving him. Then she remembered why she had come to him and what she had to tell him. Slowly she wiggled herself out of his arms and stepped back. The smile on his face disappeared.

'What is wrong?' He asked, his voice sounded worried and concerned.

'This isn't right,' she simply told him.

'It is. It feels so right.'

'It may feel right but it's wrong.'

Arthur suddenly felt worry and sadness inside him. His stomach twisted and turned and his face began to turn as pale as the moon.

'What are you trying to say, my love?' He asked, dreading the words which would soon come out of Guinevere's mouth. Guinevere let out a big sigh.

'I think you already know,' she whispered as she looked down. Arthur's fingers touched her beautifully shaped chin and rose her head up so she was gazing up at him once again.

'No, I won't let you leave again! I was foolish to send you away,' the young King cried.

'Arthur, I never left you,' she sobbed. 'I'm always with you, in your heart.'

Arthur felt his eyes swell with tears. His head was throbbing and he couldn't believe what was happening. Guinevere, his only love, was going to part from him forever.

'I won't let you!' He shouted loudly, this time he was more tenacious. Guinevere simply smiled at his attempt to control her. She fell in love with an arrogant rude prince after all; when he stayed in her house and took advantage of her kindness.

'Oh, Arthur,' she said with tears slipping down her cheeks. 'You'll make a fine King.'

'Not without you!'

'You must let me go.'

'No!'

It was too late, Guinevere was already starting to vanish. Arthur's finger could no longer feel her soft skin.

'No!' He repeated, hoping that she would stay.

'Do you love me?' She asked sweetly while smiling.

'Yes! Yes, of course I do.' Her smile melted his heart and he had to smile.

'Then let me go, let me be free.'

She pressed his lips against his for the final time. His eyes closed and his lips lingered on hers. He hoped that they would stay there forever. But then they were no longer there and Arthur opened his eyes, only to find that he was standing alone in his chambers.

'GUINEVERE!' He screamed as he stared up at the ceiling.

She could hear his scream from outside next to Merlin. Eyes filled with tears, she turned to Merlin and nodded.

'I'm ready,' she said.

'You always were,' he commented before giving her the greatest hug he had ever given. Guinevere smiled and hugged him back. The two of them began to approach the scaffold.

'You can do this,' Merlin added as he stopped in front of the scaffold. Guinevere gave him a slight smile and stared at the scaffold. It brought back so many memories...

_The blade of the axe perched on the scaffold glistened in the little sunlight there was. The crows screeched above among the dark clouds in the pale sky. A large crowd of whispering Camelot citizens surrounded the scaffold._

She began to walk up the steps. Each step she took made her heart pound rapidly.

_She was heading for the scaffold where the executioner waited for her with his axe. A shiver ran down her spine as she looked up at him. He was a large man and had a mysterious scary feeling about him. His face was covered by a black mask and he wore clothes like a blacksmith. Despite the booing of the crowd, Guinevere walked up the steps of the scaffold gracefully like a queen._

Then she was there...on the scaffold. She turned to where the audience would have stood and glanced around. Guinevere slowly knelt down and imagined that there was a stump in front of her. She laid her head down on it and closed her eyes.

_The executioner raised his axe and the crowd gasp. The tiny hairs on the back of Guinevere's neck stuck up and she accepted her fate. Her eyes closed and the last few tears streamed down her face._

From out of nowhere, Guinevere heard Arthur's cry. She heard the word come out of his mouth and echo in her ears like a pounding drum. '_Guinevere'_. Immediately, she smiled and looked up to the King's balcony. A faint image of Arthur stood there. She could see his eyes which were full of love for her. This was how he looked before she died, he was regretting his decision.

'Arthur,' she whispered with a smile. 'I love you.'

And then she dissolved into gold powder before disappearing, like ashes in the wind.

A tear rolled down Merlin's pale face.

'Be at peace, Guinevere,' he said before closing his eyes and bowing his head.

**END OF PART ONE**

**Yup that's right! End of Part One...which means there are others parts! Yuppeeee! More Arwen! Well not really, she's dead now. But you get the picture. Don't be too worried though, she'll be back. Arwen lasts forever (Arwen fans would know ;) )**

**Make sure you add this to your story alert so you can see when Part Two begins. Also please keep reviewing! I want to hear your thoughts and opinions. Is writing Part Two a good idea? Btw it involves Arwen but in a different way... ooooooooh. Now that's worth keeping in tune! I mean who doesn't love Arwen?**

**Thanks guys and keep reading & reviewing!**

**-Livi X**

**P.S Sorry for taking a while to update. Happy Valentines Day! XXX**


	12. PART II: Chapter I

_**Goodbye, my love: Part II**_

_**-A second chance-**_

**CHAPTER ONE**

* * *

><p>The vista was such a beautiful one. The ships and boats were docked in the dark blue water at Galata, and the birds watched from above in the clear sky. Fisherman sat on boxes and barrels of ship goods while they fiddled with their fishing nets. A sharp metallic sound echoed in the air and came from a blacksmith in his shop. Empty cages were scattered across the dock, where once prisoners would have been held in before their trial.<p>

The ground looked dry and desolate, as if it had been shielded from any falling rain. Street preachers on scaffolds performed in front of a reasonable size audience. Shouts imparted from what only could be from a human mouth, travelling through the air and reaching everyone's ears. The street preachers' shouts rose in pitch as they became stern about the subject they were preaching.

All this lay on a long piece of land which looked as though a mighty hand had scratched a furrow through the sea and filled it with dirt and rock.

A young handsome man on a ship watched this piece of land; he listened to the sound and watched the people's actions. He was familiar with the everyday activities which took place there. Although he had not been here for a while, he still felt like he never had left. This land was Constantinople, and was ruled by Sultan Bayezid II. Over the years it had been consumed by war and injustice. But it still sustained its beautiful proud image and kept its feared reputation. Constantinople was an impregnable city, equipped with well-trained soldiers known as Janissaries.

The young man forced himself to turn away from the view as he was greeted by a Janissary.

'Prince Suleiman, we are here,' the Janissary said with a bow.

'As I can see,' Suleiman replied as he glanced back at Constantinople.

Suleiman had never seen himself as a prince, he liked to see himself as a young student. He had fostered no intentions of becoming Sultan, although his grandfather was Sultan Bayezid. He had thrown himself into education and received tutoring at Topkapi Palace, his home.

The ship arrived at Constantinople and Suleiman smiled as he joined his Venetian friend Malvolio, who was leaning against the wall listening to a distance preacher. He smiled when his eyes came across Suleiman.

'They do not know what they preach,' hissed Malvolio as his hand gestured towards the preacher. The young prince glanced behind him at the audience in front of the scaffold. He listened to the words being spoken by the preacher, watched the face expressions of the audiences' faces rapidly change.

'Ahmet should be the Sultan of Istanbul! He is wise, generous, and a perfect ruler for us all. Come, brothers and sisters! Listen to the truth I speak. Do not let the words of the Janissaries poison your mind into thinking that Selim should be Sultan,' the preacher cried and Suleiman's face turned pale. Malvolio noticed this and pursed his lips tight together.

'Come, Suleiman,' he said as he gripped the prince's arm. 'He speaks rubbish.'

'He speaks his mind, his opinion. The opinion of the people?' Suleiman's own words were beginning to confuse him. Malvolio noticed some Janissaries begin to storm up to the preacher.

'Your father is best for the throne. He is strong, your uncle is weak. He is brave, your uncle is coward.'

'Be careful about where you say such things, Malvolio. Although I do thank you for expressing your kind opinion; but it should not be I who you express it to. My grandfather has made his choice.'

'He has not! He considers letting your uncle be King but I doubt he'll go along with it. He will recognise what is wrong about Ahmet soon.'

'Let us go, I no longer wish to discuss this subject,' Suleiman said sharply.

Ahmet was the favourite son of Sultan Bayezid, and uncle to Suleiman. His father was Selim, the eldest son of Sultan Bayezid. As eldest, Selim was supposed to succeed the Sultan throne and his sons after that. But Sultan Bayezid was beginning to see Selim as an un fit ruler and was deciding if Ahmet, his younger son, should be Sultan.

Meanwhile, in the lower Suburbs of Constantinople, a young Romany (gypsy) stood leaning against her caravan. Her long dark brown hair was in a long plat which flowed down her back. She listened to the slow, depressing music being played by the others. She watched the crackling flames of the camp fire flicker and waver with every gust of wind. In the distance her friend could be seen stirring the pot of stew which would be later served to all.

'Mirela!' Shouted her elder sister as she climbed out of their caravan. 'Where have you been?'

'I've been here,' Mirela responded truthfully.

'If you've been with those friends of yours spying on guards again, I swear to God I'll kill you!'

Mirela glanced around shyly and felt embarrassed now that they had attracted the attention of the other gypsies. Her and her friends often went out and watched Janissaries from a distance. They found them handsome and attractive in their beautiful gold masks and sea green outfits. Although they would never be able to marry one, after all they were only gypsies.

'I've been here,' she repeated through her gritted teeth.

'How you ever thought I would believe that,' replied her sister, the tone of her voice almost mocking her.

Mirela narrowed her eyes. 'What is it, Paola?'

'Mother requires your presence,' Paola shot back immediately. Mirela sighed and began to make her way up the steps to the caravan, but was grabbed by the wrist by Paola.

'And don't try anything funny, you know how vulnerable mother is,' she added before hastily letting go of her sister's wrist. Mirela shot a glare at her before entering the caravan.

'Mother?' She called out after she had forced the broken door to close.

'I am in here,' said a croaky weak voice coming from the only other room in the caravan apart from the one Mirela was standing in. Mirela followed the sound of her mothers' voice and sat down at her feet.

'How can I be at service, mother?' she asked.

'The party and gathering in Topkapi Palace is in a few days and you are honoured to have been chosen among the others to be entertainment with the girl dancers. I knew they couldn't resist leaving you behind, you're so very beautiful.'

Mirela felt the colour rise in her cheeks and bowed her head.

'Thank you,' she managed.

'I suggest you take some time to practice with the other girls,' added her mother.

'What of my chores?'

'I just talked with Paola, she hastily agreed to do them for the next few days.'

_No wonder she was in such a bad mood_, Mirela thought to herself.

'Thank you, mother,' she said, 'I'm so very grateful for this kindness.'

'Do not thank me, thank your sister,' her mother replied and she coughed. Mirela patted her back before leaving the caravan. Her eyes met Paola's and she received a horrible glare. Perhaps she should wait until tomorrow to thank her.


	13. PART II: Chapter II

**CHAPTER TWO**

* * *

><p>'Our job is to make sure the guests are being entertained and are enjoying themselves,' Oksana stated as she walked up and down, her eyes fixed on each and every one of us. 'I want you all to make no mistakes. Make yourselves look reasonable and presentable. Prince Ahmet, Prince Selim and his son Prince Suleiman shall be attending this feast, we want to impress them! We want to show them that we are more than simple Romani roaming the lower district.'<p>

Oksana spoke the truth, and her words triggered Mirela to exchange looks with her friend Odessa. The two of them were among a group of gypsies in the gardens of Topkapi Palace. They had been assembled here today to practice for the feast, which would be held tomorrow. Once Oksana had finished speaking, Odessa and Mirela approached each other and watched the others begin to take their positions.

'Selim will be here,' Odessa gasped as she glanced around the palace. 'Do you think he is in the palace now?'

'I do not know, Odessa,' Mirela sighed in response. 'I doubt you will not encounter him at the party.'

'You are so negative, Mirela.'

'I speak the truth. Do not expect for him to speak with you. Would you rather hear this from a friend or from a stranger?'

Odessa fell silent and looked up at the sky.

'Selim is old,' she muttered. 'Suleiman is handsome and talented.'

'You are not serious, are you?' Mirela laughed and her eyes met Odessa's; then she realised her friend was serious. Her smile disappeared from her face and she closed her eyes to control her laughter.

'Odessa, Mirela, would you prefer not to take part in the party at all?' Oksana snapped. Mirela's eyes shot open and stared at the middle-aged woman. She had been too busy controlling her laughter and hadn't noticed her approaching them. Mirela's gaze dropped and she bowed her head.

'Forgive us, Oksana,' she mumbled as she walked away to join the group. She felt the back of her head to make sure her bun had not fallen out before dancing with the others. Most of the dance routines they had been taught were twirling around occasionally moving and shaking their hips in a snake-like way.

Behind them were the groups of young men who breathed fire from their sticks and played instruments. Mirela heard the bells on her feet jingling as she tapped them on the ground.

The dancing Romani were unaware of Prince Suleiman's presence. He was on a balcony in the Topkapi Palace playing chess with his uncle Ahmet. Suleiman made a move and Ahmet cocked an eyebrow in response.

'What is that?' He asked, gesturing to the chess board with a foolish face expression.

'A move,' Suleiman replied with his eyes narrowed.

'I have never come across this 'move'.'

'I made it up.'

Ahmet chuckled at his nephew's words and stroked his chin. Suleiman remained silent, staring at his uncle and searching his eyes for a better reaction than the one he had just given.

'A little un fair to use a move your opponent does not know about, don't you think?' Ahmet asked, still smiling. He hoped to remove the cold stern look from Suleiman's face and replace it with a joyful radiant one. He did not succeed.

'Ah yes,' Suleiman commented as he held out his finger to his uncle, 'but you were not expecting it. A Sultan should surprise his enemy with unknown moves.'

Ahmet's thin lips curved into a smile. His head tilted slightly to the left as if to provoke his nephew. And that look; so bedevilling, so displeasing; surely designed to trigger Suleiman's emotions and make the young prince lash out? Just his gaze made Suleiman feel perturbed. Yet he looked so innocent, so aureoles at the same time. Suleiman was not easily fooled by his uncle's looks.

'Do you wish to become Sultan one day?' Ahmet asked as he moved his piece.

'That is a different matter to discuss,' Suleiman said in response to his question, eyeing the piece his uncle had just moved. 'Although I have no serious intentions to become Sultan. I am focused on educating myself as much as I can. It depends if my father is to become Sultan...then I believe I shall be the next.'

Suleiman made his move and looked up at Ahmet, searching for his reaction on his face.

'Yes,' Ahmet agreed as he made his move. 'Your talents have not gone un noticed; your grandfather is pleased with your work, is he not? He favours you out of us all.'

''Favour' is too much of a strong term, uncle. Perhaps 'likes' would describe how he feels about me,' said Suleiman with honesty in his eyes.

'I meant what I said, Suleiman. And deep inside you know it is the truth.'

Suleiman shot a glare at his uncle and watched him move his piece cautiously, oblivious to Suleiman's Queen nearby. He moved the Queen till it was in line with the King.

'Checkmate,' he mumbled and it took a while for Ahmet to realise he had nowhere to go.

'You win,' Ahmet said with a smile. 'I never liked this game much anyway.'

'Perhaps I can teach you to be better. If you are to be Sultan, you will need to be taught skill and efficiency,' was Suleiman's response as he lowered his gaze.

'Enough about Sultans,' Ahmet grumbled. 'Are you looking forward to the party?'

Suleiman's gaze turned to the dancing gypsies outside in the gardens. 'Of course, uncle.'

'Are you looking forward to seeing your father?' Ahmet asked as he called over some servants to tidy away the chess game.

'I do not know what I feel, uncle,' Suleiman sighed as he rested his elbows on the table.

'Tell me when you do, I have some business to discuss with Tarik.' Ahmet got to his feet and left silently, leaving his nephew glancing up at the clear blue skies. His attentions then turned to the dancing Romani outside. They were trying so hard to make sure that everything was perfect for the party, and Suleiman appreciated their efforts.

Later in the afternoon, Suleiman was passing through the corridors when he heard a conversation taking place between his uncle Ahmet and his father's trusted ally Tarik. He couldn't help but press his ear against the door and listen.

'You called for me, Ahmet,' Tarik greeted the Prince as he approached him.

'Indeed I did,' Ahmet spat. Suleiman could tell his uncle was angry, but what about?

'How can I be of service?' Tarik sounded so formal, he sounded to innocent to be in the wrong.

'Have you heard what the heralds say about me, Tarik? It is obvious they favour my brother, they want him to be Sultan. They used to favour _me_!'

'My apologies, Ahmet, but I do not see how I am connected to this situation?'

'I think you do, I think you are bribing the heralds and telling them to preach about how 'great' Selim is! You are his closest friend and most trusted ally after all.'

Tarik laughed in a bittersweet way at Ahmet's words. Ahmet twitched in frustration when he saw this.

'And why would I do that?' Tarik asked.

'Because you want him to be Sultan! But I tell you now, it is not the people's choice...it is my father's!' Ahmet shouted in Tarik's face.

'This is pathetic, I do not see why I have been summoned here.'

'What is it about me, Tarik? What is it about me which you hate so much? Why can't I be the next Sultan?'

Tarik took a deep breath and looked him in the eye.

'Do you really want to know?' He asked.

'That is why I asked,' snapped Ahmet, with fury in his eyes.

'You are weak, Ahmet. Selim is strong. He will make a fine Sultan and shall be remembered for years to come, you will be a poor Sultan and shall be an embarrassment to Constantinople. I do not need to bribe heralds to tell the people of your weakness, they already know. And deep inside, so does your father.'

At first, Ahmet could not believe that Tarik had said that to him. He may be the general of the Constantinople army, leader of the janissaries; but he had no right to take to a Prince like that.

'Get. Out.' Ahmet hissed through clenched teeth.

Suleiman heard footsteps heading towards the door coming from inside the room and immediately pulled away. He quickly walked down the corridor and pretended to be oblivious to the situation. Had that conversation really just taken place? Suleiman had been witness to the truth; his uncle would do anything to be Sultan. Even if it involved making enemies with the general. What is Ahmet did become the Sultan? Would he remove Tarik from his position or worse? Questions like these buzzed around in Suleiman's head, and he knew he would never find out the answers until his grandfather made his decision.

**Will Mirela be able to calm Suleiman down? Find out in the next chapter: The Party at Topkapi Palace!**


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